So a few readers have left questions and suggestions for me in the comments. Thank you for taking the time to do so, I appreciate it. Anything that helps me become a better writer helps me to achieve what I hope to do by writing, entertain people, especially myself. (/chuckle)

I thought about posting this as an Author's Note in the next chapter of Becoming Clark, but it just got too long. I don't want to break the immersion or bore/irritate the readers who clicked there for a story, not my stupid ramblings! So I'll leave a short AN message to come here if they are interested.

In my story Becoming Clark I haven't explicitly stated everything I think about the character's motives and why he's doing what he's doing or why he's going about it in such a way. I'm not trying to sound like some great intellectual who is playing a chess game so deep, nobody understand it but me. Rather it's a problem as the author of "how the hell do I show rather than tell?" If I just write an essay of his motivations, it is incredibly dull and seems like the author is lecturing his audience. Boring.

I'm trying to write the story of a man who is basically given cheat codes upon his rebirth. If he wanted to he could, in an instant, be powerful enough to destroy the earth. But that's not what he wants to do. That's not his (pause for melodrama) Motivation. He wants to build something up, and propel his fellow humans into the stars. (he still thinks of himself as human, having lived as one for several decades in his past life)

After my grandfather passed away, one of the things my dad told me about him was that his favorite author was Louis L'Amour. So I read a lot of his books. I loved them. L'Amour's main characters were all men, naturally, since he wrote mostly westerns. They could be gregarious or the silent type. They could be clever and scheming against those that try to scheme them, or they could be the frontal assault type that just don't put up with shite from anyone.

There is one snapshot of a character stuck with me. The man was a cowboy, and a lot of his time was spent riding his horse alone as he worked. So he had a lot of thinking time. At night he'd read a few pages of whatever books he could get hold of. Books by great thinkers, law makers, and those that explored what it means to be human, to be a man, to be a member of society. During the day he'd ponder those things and how it relates to him as he went about herding cattle, building fences, and other such manual labor.

That character always stuck with me. From the outside, he's just a small time, humble cowboy. So many people in society would look down on him for being rough, for being poor, for being a wild man that doesn't fit in with society, etc. But inside, he's a man who thinks. A man who ponders, who has many thoughts he has no one to share with. And that dichotomy always struck me. What is the measure of a man? What is his worth? How do you know if a man has actually lived his life? Was the life he's lived what he's always wanted?

Well, back to Clark and what he's doing with his rebirth second chance. So this "normal guy" gets plopped into a new baby body that gives him cheat codes to be the top dog. But, he's still a baby. Who is going to listen to a baby? He's got to grow up first. So he's got lots of time to think as he grows up.

Some of the things he thinks of while growing up.

First, in order to be able to have any say or influence in effecting changes, Clark needs to be able to back up what he's saying, and in such a way that will be completely convincing.

If someone ran up to you while you're walking down the street and started telling you how he's got this idea that will make both of you millions of dollars, all you have to do is provide a little investment to get both of you started. How ridiculous would that be? It's obviously a scam, right?

But if you went into one of those investment firms, one that has a proven track record and they gave a good power point presentation with data and trends that backed up their word that they could multiply your investments with minimal risk. Well, it's a lot more believable that you wouldn't just be throwing your money away.

Poor farmboy Clark (from the Smallville show, or S-Clark), trying to tell Lex Luthor how he should stick to a good moral code when dealing with the cut throat business world is…a recipe for a falling out. S-Clark sticks to his moral code, and naively thinks that if everyone did the same, the world would be a better place. While Lex lives in a world where if you're easy to pin down (by being too honorable) your enemies will make you bleed $$$ and sometimes even actual blood.

I have my Clark realize that the best way to convince people to his way of thinking is by providing benefits to make their life better and actually solve their problems. S-Clark makes Lex know he feels disappointed in him when he doesn't live up to certain honorable codes. My Clark realizes there's certain reasons (Lex's dad's hold on the money for example) why Lex can't always do what he thinks is best. So Clark provides Lex with more options to solve his problems. Whether he takes those options? Up to Lex.

Second thing that is inherent in Clark's motivations is that he just can't do everything for everyone. It's impossible.

One of the themes I remember from some of the Superman stories is the dilemma that the Justice league faces. They are the Protectors of Humanity! But, how much do they have to hold humanities hand? In the stories where they run across a more authority wielding Justice league from different parts of the multiverse, at some point the Justice league decided, "Nope! Humanity can't handle the great responsibility of advanced tech, let's limit them so it's easier to police them and their every actions." And instead of protectors they turn into dictators and oppressors of the human spirit and mankinds desire to grow and explore.

So how does Clark avoid this problem of doing everything for everyone and (figuratively) giving his life to do the paperwork of humanity? Step 1) Don't wear the tights. Step 2) Train people up in his company to be able to handle issues so he don't have to. Step 3) Profit. (lol)

A third thing that Clark is aware of is that great changes in society can cause great upheavals.

The reason I made this an unspoken motivation of Clark's and writing about it in an authors notes kind of thing and telling instead of showing is that I just don't want the story to go in that direction. If I were to show the effects of Clark learning this lesson, I'd have to do something like having Clark see how everyone is all up in arms about Big Oil, and they are talking like "Once we get renewable sources of energy and get rid of big oil, the Environment and Everything will be juuust PEACHY!" (thank you Weird Al for Albuquerque)

Then Clark would be like, "Hey, I have the plans for a super generator that is environmentally friendly, easy to make, everything will be better off once I release the plans for this. Everyone will be happy!"

Then Clark would have to watch the world implode. Big oil goes out of business, millions of people are jobless. How they going to get food? Electric companies goes out of business, millions are jobless. How they going to get food? The great circle of life *cough* er the circle of economics? Well, everything is broken, billions of people are starving! War and banditry is rife! All because Clark didn't realize that breaking one industry in the great economic circle of life will cause big problems. But hey, I sure showed Clark learning that lesson!

And then my story is broken, and goes to the unfinished fanfic graveyard after only a few chapters. /cry

So Clark will be spreading his influence and changing things slowly so that humanity has time to grow and adjust its pants to fit. (what? It's a metaphor. Humanity at some point has to put on its big boy pants. lol)

The last thing I wanted to touch on in this extended AN is Clark's relationships. *cough* I meant RELATIONSHIPS. So, first off, I understand that I'll get flak no matter what I do with Clark's relationships. If I avoid them altogether, some will be unsatisfied that I left out a key element in the Power Fantasy genre of fanfics. What's the point of a power fantasy if I don't give him a harem?

I generally agree in this case, so Clark will get a harem in this story.

Which leads to the next group of unhappy people, who might (now remember I said MIGHT) say something along the lines of, "Of course stupid author gives him a harem. That's so unrealistic. No girl today would let themselves be in a harem. Only One True Love is true path." Now I'm not trying to strawman anyone or say that the one true love thing doesn't happen, because it does. And I enjoy those types of story a lot as well. This just isn't one of those.

(BTW, I actually think many people's distaste for Harem stories is that they are written in a contrived manner. The girl sees the MC and immediately falls so deeply in love that they would betray everyone else in their life for him. They no longer have any desires or wishes of their own. Even if before meeting the MC they were portrayed as a driven and talented person with dreams and goals of their own. Which is a big reason why the girl was so awesome and hot in the first place. But once they get bit by the love bug, they turn into a stupid mindless follower for the MC to leave behind on his Quest For More Harem! So yeah, there are legit reasons people don't like harem stories. I can't say I won't make some mistakes that people will detest, but I'll try to keep it interesting. It's a tightrope I'm walking I tell ya! A greasy, slippery, bouncy tightrope!)

So this particular story Clark will just be so awesome, with his Powers, Money, and ability to give other people Powers, that many women will want to be with him and share the adventure that is his life. And well, he is living the fantasy. He does have a high libido because he's the Paragon of Total Masculinity! (love that Gurren Lagann) So as long as the girls he likes decide that they want to get in on the massive love fest that is, sorry to say, going on backstage, he's okay with it.

(Sorry readers, I know a lot of you like your lemons and limes, but I just can't bring myself to torture you with my sad attempts. I always liked William Goldman's explanation of why he didn't fully flesh out the reunion scene between Buttercup and Westley in The Princess Bride, where he basically said, "While incredibly moving to those involved, it was mostly them saying how much they loved and missed each other. So to an outsider who didn't feel those emotions, it would be quite boring. And, by the way, even fictional characters deserve some privacy, so moving on." It cracked me up, and so I reserve the right to use it. Moving on.)

Now the harem crowd can sometimes get a bit rowdy. And some might be a bit unsatisfied if every single hawt female doesn't end up in Clark's harem. "I am the Alpha of all Alphas. All girls belong to me! Every other man is a beta! RAAAHHHRR!"

I am exaggerating for (hopefully) comedic effect.

So while Clark will be getting a harem, some people will just not make the list for a number of reasons. (subject to change without notice)

1) Clark will have some friends that are guys. And good guys just don't cockblock their friends.

2) No matter how rich or handsome or nice guy you think you are, sometimes girls just won't like you. Sorry. It's also true that sometimes guys just won't take a shine to a girl, no matter how much she shows him she loves him and she'd be perfect for him. That's just the way life works. Love (the initial attraction at any rate) doesn't always have rational reasons for happening. It could be as simple as seeing someone across the room looking a certain way, and the possibility is there. Whether or not it blooms takes work, of course. So some girls just won't go for Clark. Sorry Clark. Them's the breaks.

3) This Clark is still grounded in some particular values and won't cross certain boundaries. So, no, Kara as his first cousin won't be part of his harem. I know she's hot, but she's also his cousin, so he won't be going there.

I'd like to leave a general "Thank You" for taking the time to read my stories. Hopefully You Are Entertained! (Ah, Gladiator. /chuckle)

Clark woke up from a very strange dream.

The fact that he'd had a dream in the first place was very strange. Ever since he'd been reincarnated he hadn't dreamt whenever he slept. This was very different from his past life where he had all kinds of strange fantastical dreams.

So not only was it strange that he'd had a dream, but the dream itself was unusual for him. In the dream he'd been online reading a story about his life. Was this a wierd way for him to self reflect on his decisions since he had a second chance at life? If so his brain took a very unusual method to do so.

Looking at the time, Clark noticed he had a few hours until school started for the morning. He could tell that he wouldn't be able to get anymore sleep, so he decided to go fly for a while. It was the perfect method to clear his head. He never got tired of being able to dance among the clouds and watch the sunrise.

After playing around for a while and enjoying the beauty of a sunrise, Clark looked up. His enhanced vision let him see the various satelites in orbit. He still hadn't mustered up the courage to go into space for a solar bath. Intellectually he knew that he would survive, but deep in his gut he still was too nervous to take the plunge. It's like in that movie The Abyss where they had the oxygenated water that they could breathe. Just because they knew they could breathe that liquid did nothing for the instictive "I'm drowning" impulses their bodies exhibited.

He knew he would do it soon, if only so he wasn't too weak when world breaking danger showed up. But in his mind, it was more important at the moment to counter his weaknesses and gain actual skill in combat. That whole Halloween Incident, which is what he called his misadventures in Sunnydale in his mind, had been a perfect example.

After waking up in a female body with memories of Bulma in the forefront, he'd panicked multiple times and made some stupid decisions. He hadn't stopped to think things through before acting, and he'd almost been killed in the past by a weak vampire. The memories he'd gotten from Bulma hadn't helped, because while she was brilliant, she wasn't a fighter. As a result, he'd almost fallen to a newborn leach. Pathetic really.

But that's exactly why he needed to train his skills, so he knew what to do in combat. He now had a lot of tools, including magic. But a tool is useless if he doesn't know how to use it.

Now if he could just figure out why someone online was yelling at him in his dreams about violating rules of content guidelines. Thinking about what he's doing and planning is also part of a story, right?

Guess not.

Clark looked at the time, and sped off to get ready for school. School was self study and socializing time, and it was an important part of his routine. It kept him grounded and socialized so he didn't go off the deep end. Just because he's got a lot of power now doesn't mean he needs to turn into a megalomaniac. He's enjoying his second chance at life too much to be such a greedy narrow minded obssessive downer.